Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Read: "Killing Floor" by Lee Child

Read: Killing Floor by Lee Child, 1997, 0515123447.

Very

good. This is the fourth Jack Reacher book I've read. Two of those

novels were so-so. Some of the mystery aspects were good in those two

books but the stories ended up blah. I suppose Reacher himself is the

real draw for readers anyway.

Reacher

is eating breakfast in a small town Georgia diner when four cops burst

in and arrest him for murder. Several hours before, and a few miles up

the road, a guy had his face shot off and was kicked to a pulp. The

usual happens: Reacher does really smart things, Reacher out thinks

people, Reacher draws on his extensive experience, Reacher wears the

same clothes, Reacher pours the pork to a gal cop, Reacher uses his

bulk and muscle to kill without remorse.

The

plotting was good. Of the four Child books I have read there are one or

two things that are a real stretch. This one has the town being paid

off at $1,000 to each shop owner with the town leadership not only

rotten but viciously violent. I liked this one though. It was fun to

read.

Monday, September 15, 2008

Read: "Long Road Home: one step at a time" by G.B.Trudeau

Read: Long Road Home: one step at a time by G.B.Trudeau, 2005, 0740753851.

That was quick.

Monday, September 8, 2008

Flipped Through: "Ditch Medicine" by Hugh L. Coffee

Flipped Through: Ditch Medicine: Advanced Field Procedures for Emergencies by Hugh L. Coffee, 2002, 1581603908.

Read about this online and reserved it.

An introductory technical guide. More for third world, and disaster medicine. Made me think more of medics or special forces soldiers out in the far boonies without hospital care.

Interesting to look through because it goes beyond first aid or advanced first aid. Has instruction on field techniques for intravenous therapy, decompression and drainage of the chest, infected wounds - including photos of a gun shot wound through the foot, small wound repair - with illustrations of a buttocks injury opened up and bandaged. The amputations section is gruesome, "The PCHP holds the amputation knife firmly in his hand ans starts the incision at the side of the extremity opposite to where it stands...after the deep muscles have been retracted, the periosteum of the bone is incised and the femur sawn through flush with the retracted muscle."

TO GOOGLE SEARCHERS: I read several good comments about this book and that is why I took a gander at it. But, I cannot vouch for the authenticity of those reviewers or their training or skills; my experience is limited to very basic first aid instruction. If you search through some of the online forums for guns, police, or survival you'll likely find more information on Coffee's book and similar books.